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Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Happy Eight Months, Carter!

Dear Sweet Boy,

This is getting a little silly now! Mama swears she was just sitting down to write your seventh month letter yesterday and your birth story the day before. How is it possible that you are eight months old already? I guess that saying rings true, "time flies when you're having fun," and having fun you certainly are!

You are constantly on the move and on the go. Interested in everything and anything that comes your way.

You've been a busy little boy this month and it reflects in the one nap you've started taking each day. Finally, a nap. I don't ask much of you Baby Carter, but please continue napping. Although it's only twenty to thirty minutes at a time, your little brain needs the rest. So does Mama.

Eight months brought new tastes to your palette. Nectarines, plums, lentils, tomatoes and peaches. Once again, you surprised Mama and Daddy with your love for all things food. You also started eating three solid meals per day. Typically a fruit and oatmeal in the morning, a fruit-veggie combo around noon followed by your dinner which typically consists of a vegetable with rice.

You're still drinking three 8oz bottles of formula per day and one sippy full of water. Mama heard that sippies with straws were excellent muscle strengtheners in regards to lip control and immediately tossed your regular sippies and replaced them with straw cups. You picked up how to suck from the straw in no-time and love sipping your water with an afternoon snack of banana pieces, puffs or Mum-Mum's.

You're sleeping 10-14 hours overnight, except for those awful five days surrounding your seventh month birthday when you cut your first two teeth. We might as well have had a brand new baby during those five days and your Mama and Daddy are waiting with baited breath for the rest of your teeth to come in. Aside from terrible sleep, you teethed like a champ and once we figured out the perfect routine of Motrin and Hyland's Teething Gel, you were as happy as a lark.

You typically go down for the night between 6 and 7pm and sleep clear through until 7am when Daddy gets up for work. Sure, there are a few nights when you're up looking for your nunni around midnight, but you settle yourself back down fairly quickly. You nap, without fail, at 10:30 every morning. Mama or Daddy (usually Mama!) rocks you to sleep every night. It's one of my favorite times of the day. My other favorite time of the day is bathtime!

No real "crawling" yet, but you certainly know how to get to where you want to go! You literally "scoot" across the floor on your little tushie while in a sitting position. When that fails, you just roll onto the floor and roll wherever you need to be.

You've mastered sitting from a laying position and getting onto your belly from a sitting position. You love to "stand," and will reach for myself or Daddy to help you into a standing position. You've "pulled up" only a handful of times on your crib and pack and play and I have a feeling this next month will bring lot's of developments on that front.

You "talk" and babble to yourself all the time. You talk yourself to sleep, you talk yourself awake in the morning and you love to talk to your toys when you're sitting on the floor.

"Mama, Dadda and Baba" are the sounds you've mastered. I can't say that they are actual words yet- although you've been saying them for over a month. I'm not sure you actually connect the words with who/what they belong to. Who knows, maybe you're just smarter than your Mama and I just haven't really noticed.

You don't like to hear the word, "no." The minute we say it to you or take something away, you make the "hurt feelings face" and will sometimes go as far as to cry big, fat crocodile tears. The minute we give you something new to play with, it's as if nothing ever happened! You're such a little stinker, Carterito!

You love to make this "clicking" noise with your tongue as if you're telling a horsey to "giddyup!" You crack yourself up over and over again each time that you do it.

You've started "signing" for "milk" with both hands when you want "more" of something. When sitting in your high chair you'll use both hands to sign "milk" when you're hungry. Milk, purees, whatever it is, you just want it. Mama thinks she'll start working with you on a few signs over the course of the next few months!

You've perfected the pincer grasp and use it all the time. You even try to pick up your blocks and books with that little pointer finger/thumb combo! Sometimes you're just plain silly, Carter!

You're still pretty much a baldie and your two bottom middle teeth are almost fully grown in.

You love to sing, dance and play and I'm fairly certain you would be content if we did those three things all day. You are obsessed with Mickey's "Hot Dog" song. The minute you hear it come on, even if you're in a room other than the TV room, you immediately start bopping and swaying to the music with the biggest smile on your face!

Your favorite toys include your board books, Blue Puppy and knocking down blocks. You absolutely love, love, love to knock down the block towers that Mama and Daddy build for you. So, maybe architecture isn't your bag, but Demolition might be right up your alley!

With each day that passes, we're noticing that you look more and more like your Mama and your Poppy. You have the brightest, bluest eyes we've ever seen and we may be a little biased, but we think you're the most beautiful little boy in the whole wide world.

We love you so much Little Man. We've said it before and we'll say it again, but you're the greatest blessing we've ever known! Happy Eight Months!

Disclaimer: Without a doubt this has been the most difficult "monthly photo shoot" on the face of this planet. Next month? I'm busting out the duct tape. For reals.

I'm new to your blog. He is adorable. But how in the world do you get him to sleep for 10-14 hours at night?? I need secrets. I guess I can't complain too much because my son likes his naps. Before he started daycare he was taking two naps a day for 2 hours at a time. Now he only gets one 2 hour nap. But he only sleeps for about 8-9 hours at night. He's also 13.5 months now.

He is such a little handsome fella ;) Wish I had a baby girl to hook him up with (kind of but not really). The photos turned out cute, but it is definitely work getting an 'on the go' little one to sit still. You rocked it girl!

Happy 8 months Carter! Happy he's giving you one nap at least, as short as it might be! Tommy fights me with naps when we're home on the weekends, but at school, he'll go for THREE hours! i think it's the peer pressure of everyone else napping!

So cute! Happy 8 months! Haha, photoshoots definitely get more and more difficult :) Our Little is going through a phase (hopefully it lasts!) when you pull out a camera or put a phone up to take a pic and say smile, he lays on the goofiest wonderful cheese smile :) It's amazing how fast the time goes, but each stage is so much fun! :)

Are those stickers on Carter's onesie? Do you mind sharing where you got them? An acquaintance got something similar for a friend recently but I couldn't find the website she said she used. I'd love to get some for my twins.

Thank you for reading ILYMTC. If you have any questions about a post or want to get in touch with me (or any of the cast of characters here at ILYMTC) email me at iloveyoumorethancarrots(at)gmail(dot)com.